The Waiting Room
by Y2Jen
Summary: Chris Jericho, Victoria and Brian Kendrick all run into each other in Dr. Tom's waiting room with separate serious problems. But their meeting will have a change on thier lives that will effect them in ways they couldn't even imagine, forever. COMPLETE!
1. Introduction

Disclaimer: I don't own wrestling or 'The Waiting Room', I own nothing, so if you sue me, that's what you'll get.  
  
In the office of doctor Tom Prichard, there are three chairs and a table with magazines in the waiting room. Victoria is dressed in black leather pants and a hot pink tank top, women's title around her waist. Brian Kendrick is waiting at the front desk, wearing dark blue jeans and a gray polo pullover. After several minutes, he grows impatient and sits down across from Victoria. She picks up a magazine and sniffs one of the perfume ads, delighted. She sets it down and picks up another one, but is horrified by the cover and quickly sets it back down. Finally she picks up the far one next to Brian and begins to read. Brian flips through one magazine and decides to break the tense silence with casual conversation.  
  
"Pretty," Brian shows Victoria the magazine. "huh?"  
  
"Yes." She smiles politely and goes back to her reading.  
  
He's eager to chat, "Long wait, hu?"  
  
"He's thorough."  
  
"Good doctor?"  
  
"Oh yes." She smiles and then holds out her hand. "Where are my manners? Victoria, Raw."  
  
"Ah, Brian Kendrick, SmackDown." They shake hands.  
  
"How do you do." Victoria goes back to reading the magazine.  
  
"Oh, fine." Brian smiles. "I got a little problem with my arm." He motions to his left arm with the ace bandage on it.  
  
"Well, I'm sure the doctor will fix it."  
  
"I broke it in a dark match the other day."  
  
"Oh! What happened?"  
  
"Attempted a moonsault off the top rope and landed on the floor outside of the ring."  
  
"I'm sorry. And your family, your wife is well?"  
  
Brian smiles but winces at the pain in his arm, "With friends this week."  
  
"Well." Victoria doesn't know what to say, she puts on a delightful face. "I love your hair."  
  
"Thank you." Brian smiles proudly. "What are you here for?"  
  
"Oh, me?" She pauses. "Women problems."  
  
"Women problems?"  
  
"I think I'm pregnant."  
  
"Oh!" That shut Brian up. "Does it hurt or anything?"  
  
"No, no, no." Victoria, like Brian, tries to put a good spin on things. "You see, I only found out because I'm late, but I haven't had morning sickness or anything. I'm just worried that something might be wrong. I told Steven that my sister is pregnant and that I'm sick to my stomach and while I'm here I'll get advice for her because she is 'hysteric'."  
  
"I see." Brian hesitates on continuing. "So, when?"  
  
"It's been about a week, I first noticed it last weekend."  
  
Brian is about to respond when the door opens, they both look up to see another patient enter. Chris Jericho. He goes over after seeing them and sits down, wearing black slacks and a black shirt.  
  
"Excuse me." Chris enters their conversation. "Are you reading that magazine?"  
  
"Take it." Brian hands it to him, then turns back to Victoria. "So are you going to have it?"  
  
"I don't think so. Steven and I are only going out, we aren't ready to settle down and get married, and we sure as hell aren't ready to have kids. I haven't even told him yet, he thinks my sister's the one pregnant and I'm only here for an upset stomach. I don't know how or if I'll ever be able to tell him. Oh, I just want the dam thing out!"  
  
Chris smirks upon hearing their conversation, "That's just the way I feel about my tonsils."  
  
The three patients look on concerned but a nurse enters and calls for Chris, it's time for his appointment. He gets up and follows her into the back room for his exam. 


	2. Chris's Exam

Chris Jericho is in an examining room sitting on one of those beds. He sits on it and kicks the chair next to it gently with the toe of his foot out of boredom. He's wearing one of those paper gowns over his street clothes, willing to take off his shirt for an arena full of fans, but not for a doctor. He's giving information to the nurse that led him into the room, but the superstar is drawing her onto the fine line between brusqueness and disapproval, but Chris just wants to get on the nurse's good side.  
  
"Name?"  
  
"Chris Jericho."  
  
"Date of birth?  
  
He smiles, "I'm 33."  
  
"Date of birth?"  
  
"Uh." Figuring it out in his head. "Nineteen seventy...." He smiles, sure. "November 9th."  
  
"Place of birth?  
  
Proudly, "New York."  
  
Specific, "What part of New York, Mr. Chris?"  
  
"Long Island. Hey, sorry I forgot to fill out my forms, a couple of coworkers and I started talking, and.... can I get an 'incomplete'?"  
  
"No problem, do you have insurance?  
  
Sarcastic, "I just started a new job, it hasn't kicked in yet. Yes I have insurance."  
  
"Do you smoke?"  
  
Digs in his pocket, "Want one?"  
  
"Any drugs?"  
  
Dryly, "Not on me."  
  
The nurse gives him a look, then continues writing, "Any operations, surgical procedures?"  
  
"No." He laughs and the nurse is starting to like him less and less.  
  
Trying to follow, "What kind of problems have you been experiencing?"  
  
"Oh, the usual. I've had a sore throat four times in the past three months, I've been feeling sick to my stomach lately, and I got a fever during my match the other night and I nearly passed out during a promo. It was pretty high and even though I'm taking aspirin it's not going away."  
  
Struggling to write it all down, "Anything else?"  
  
Chris catches himself, "It's been making me dizzy and tired, you know, fever related stuff."  
  
"The doctor will be right with you." The nurse leaves.  
  
Chris smirks at himself, realizing that he may have ruffled a few of the poor nurse's feathers. Dr. Tom enters, rolling in the chair he's already sitting in, he has his nose in his chart, "Oh, fine. Uh hu. Very good."  
  
Chris watches him curiously, "Uhm, hello?"  
  
"Oh!" The doctor greets his patient in a stereotypical cheery doctor manner, "Good morning."  
  
"Absolutely."  
  
He reads the chart, "Well, let's see what we have here, hm?" He stands up. "Sit up please. You really don't need to wear that gown."  
  
"Oh, ok." Chris blushes, relieved yet humiliated, and takes it off as Dr. Tom washes his hands.  
  
He approaches Chris, "Just relax now and keep this in your mouth." Chris allows Dr. Tom to insert the thermometer. "That's fine." He feels his forehead and compares it to the temperature of his own. He then takes it out, "Good." He opens a drawer and starts to rummage through some instruments, "And let's see now..."  
  
"Dr. Prichard, Triple H, line one." A voice on the intercom.  
  
"Excuse me." He picks up the phone. "Hello? That's perfectly normal, Hunter... it's perfectly, no it's normal. Call me if it bleeds. Good by." He hangs up and turns back to Chris, picking up where he left off. He turns on a light and grabs a stick from his lab coat pocket. Chris is used to the routine and automatically opens his mouth, "Mmm hm, alright." He examines him for a few moments. "Fine, you can relax now." He goes back to his chair and discards the stick as he picks up the chart. Chris clears his throat. "That's it, you can relax now." Chris straitens himself up into a comfortable position. Dr. Tom begins to read the chart and write things down, Chris clears his throat again, Dr. Tom looks up, "Oh. Have you noticed any change in your condition? You haven't mentioned experiencing any pain."  
  
"Only when I use my voice."  
  
"When you...?"  
  
"You know, when I deliver a promo on the mic, or am performing with my band, when I'm making an appearance on TV, you know, talking loud for a long time. I've been losing my voice lately but I think that's on another non-related matter, I get laryngitis a lot."  
  
"No, no, it's quite alright."  
  
"Well, what do you think?"  
  
Dr. Tom looks up, "About what?"  
  
Chris pauses, confused, "I dunno."  
  
"Chris." Dr. Tom smiles and stands up. "The WMD...."  
  
"WMD?"  
  
"Wrestling Medical Department." Dr. Tom continues, "The WMD believes there's not enough evidence to justify having their tonsils removed if the patient is not having the symptoms...."  
  
"Good."  
  
"Unfortunately, there's no way to confirm...."  
  
"Well what would you advise your son?"  
  
"Pardon?"  
  
"Or brother. You know, somebody close to you."  
  
"Chris, all of you are close to me."  
  
"Then what would you advise?"  
  
"Well, I'd speak with them, like I am doing with you now. Any cancer in your family?"  
  
"Uh...?" Chris gives him a strange confused look, like a young child learning a hard new word. "What does that have to do..."  
  
"Just answer the question, Chris." He's getting kinda tired of this little charade.  
  
Chris makes a thinking face, he squints his eyes and pouts his lips, "I dunno."  
  
"That's alright, it's not that typical to know if no signs have been made present."  
  
"Does it matter anyway? It's not like I have cancer or anything."  
  
"Well, we don't know that for sure."  
  
Chris stops, "Whoa, whoa wait, excuse me?"  
  
"Chris, you are a smoker, are you not?"  
  
Chris looks at the carton of cigarettes he pulled out earlier, "Occasionally, it's a new habit I can easily give up in an instant. Alcohol though, heh, that's another story."  
  
"Ever been to an ear-nose-throat pavilion?"  
  
"A what?"  
  
"I recommend you see one."  
  
Chris sighs like a disappointed little kid who just lost an argument, "Ok...."  
  
"Good." Dr. Tom rises. "I'll have my nurse phone your nurse and then we can compare."  
  
Noticing the opening for a punch line, "Nurses?"  
  
"I'm sorry?"  
  
Chris is silent and shakes his head as if to say, never mind. Dr. Tom clears his throat out of slight frustration as he gets back into his chair and wheels out the door. Chris just smirks at himself. 


	3. Victoria's Dilema

Victoria is in the hotel room lying in her bed, reading a similar magazine to the one in the waiting room. There's a knock at the door, she sets the magazine down.  
  
"Come in."  
  
The hotel attendant enters with a vacuum, "Shall I straiten up a bit?"  
  
"Please." The maid begins to dust with her duster. "Excuse me."  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"You clean the bathroom this morning?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Did you by chance, did you happen to pick up.... in the trash...."  
  
"Yes?" She pauses from the dusting and looks at Victoria sitting on the bed.  
  
"Well, I dunno, perhaps, by chance, you in the course of your cleaning, happened to find..."  
  
Becoming slightly impatient, "Found what, what might I have come across in my cleaning?"  
  
Victoria fluffs her pillow and gives it a punch, "Well, if you do find anything, tell me and not my roommate."  
  
"I'll do just that." She turns to go but stops. "Only, how will I know what I'm looking for if I don't know what it is?"  
  
"Oh." Victoria hesitates. "Well, it looks rather like, a.... a pregnancy test."  
  
"A pregnancy test?" She tries not to laugh. "I'm sorry, it's just that...."  
  
"No, no, it's ok, I understand."  
  
There's a knock at the door, "Victoria?"  
  
"It's Steven!" She motions the maid to go to the door. "Come in."  
  
The door opens, Steven enters as the maid exits to continue her rounds, "Hello my dear."  
  
"How are you, Steven?" They kiss.  
  
"Very well, thank you. I had an excellent day, training in the gym followed by a lunch with friends." He says in a cheerful British accent that causes Victoria to laugh. "And you, did you visit the doctor about your upset stomach?"  
  
"Of course."  
  
"Were you there long?"  
  
"Till the late afternoon." She conjures up a lie quickly. "You see, the doctor was called away on an emergency."  
  
"I see. So you...?"  
  
"Went out with fellow Raw superstar Chris Jericho, and a SmackDown wrestler named Brian Kendrick. They were also in the waiting room."  
  
Shocked, "Really? For...."  
  
"Brian had a broken arm and Chris is rather sick."  
  
"I see."  
  
"Steven. The nurse mentioned the work of a doctor who's had some excellent results without surgery, in cases such as my own," She catches herself, "sister."  
  
Steven realizes she's talking about her sister's pregnancy, "And who did this nurse suggest?"  
  
"A doctor by the name of Daniels."  
  
Thinking, "Daniels... wrestling doctor, gynecologist?"  
  
"No, well... I dunno." Victoria continues. "It seems that an abortion can be done without surgery."  
  
"That theory, my love, that an abortion can be done without an operation, might be just wishful thinking. I mean, how else could it be done? Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but don't you have to remove it, somehow?"  
  
"Well, I was reading..."  
  
"Have you told your sister?"  
  
"Well, I've been meaning to."  
  
"It seems that this whole discussion of this theory is upsetting you terribly."  
  
"I'm not upset."  
  
"But your stomach. I wouldn't want to irritate you anymore."  
  
"I'm perfectly fine, Steven. I just wondered if there was another way...."  
  
"Now, now Victoria. Why are you even worrying about this? This is your sister's problem, am I right?" He sits down next to her and kisses her forehead. "Why don't you call her tomorrow and talk this all out, this is nothing you should worry about. It's in the hands of your sister, after all."  
  
Victoria sighs, "You're right Steven, I'm sorry."  
  
"There we go." He hugs her. "Are you getting fat?"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"Oh." He smiles. "That's good." He continues to hug her again and they begin to make out lustfully.  
  
"Steven..." Victoria stops herself but then gives into the indulgence. 


	4. Bad Day For Chris

The next day, Dr. Tom is in his office sitting at his desk. Chris Jericho is seated across, smoking out of stress. He puts it out and waves the smoke away. Dr. Tom is oblivious, lost in his chart.  
  
"Good afternoon."  
  
Chris stands up, relieved, "Oh, good."  
  
Dr. Tom pauses and looks up, "I beg your pardon?"  
  
"You said it was a good afternoon, so I guess that means that I'm ok."  
  
"Oh, I see." He tries to speak pleasantly. "Please sit down."  
  
"Why? I mean, I don't want to be rude, but I..."  
  
"How many times a year would you get sick before smoking?"  
  
"Oh, I don't know, not very much. During cold and flu season of course but that's about it unless I caught something going around from one of the guys in the locker room." Chris looks at his watch, searching for an exit. "Speaking of which I really have to head back and...."  
  
"Please, sit down Chris. You're not making this easy for me."  
  
"Why, what's your problem? All you have to say is: Chris, you're fine, signs tested negative, so please pay the nice nurse and I never want to see you again as we both shall live, which in your case, Chris, is a long time. Right?"  
  
"I don't see why not...."  
  
Chris laughs as he sits down, "Whew, you kind had me going there, doc."  
  
Dr. Tom opens his appointment book, "Now the first thing I'd like to do is schedule an oral exam."  
  
"Whoa, wait a minute. You said it was a good afternoon!"  
  
"Shall I continue?"  
  
Chris laughs more nervously this time, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, doc. I'm not making this easy for you." He clears his throat. "The culture didn't test positive, did it?"  
  
"I'm afraid so."  
  
"Why are you afraid?"  
  
"Chris, we don't even know that the lymph nodes..."  
  
"Whoa, whoa, speak English doc!"  
  
Dr. Tom is a bit thrown, "Oh, well... as I was saying. We don't know the condition of your throat until we do the oral exam. Now how is Wednesday, or is that good?"  
  
"Wednesday. Well, I was going to do some recording with VH1, but I guess having things shoved in my mouth would be good too...." He ends the sarcasm. "What's an oral exam?"  
  
"We will basically take a full scale examination of your throat, a more presice culture and some specific pharynx samples."  
  
"Oh." Chris pauses, trying to soak all of that up. "What's a pharynx sample?"  
  
"Remove, with a scalpel. If everything looks all right, we'll have you back in the ring bright and early the next day."  
  
"And if everything doesn't?"  
  
Dr. Tom looks again at his book, "Well since you're concerned about time, I'm glad to accommodate. If you like, we could schedule the examination so that, if necessary, surgery could be preformed right then and there." He reaches for his phone.  
  
"No, no, I don't think I'd like that at all!" Chris jumps up. "I don't think I'd like that at all. I think I'd just as soon opt for the studio shoot, and let me tell you, VH1...."  
  
"What about VH1."  
  
"We're doing 'I Love The 90's', and I'm featured on a new show called 'I Was A Teenage Metalhead'. Plus I record 'Best Week Ever' every week, oh man, I'm not having the best week ever am I." He's getting very tense, breathing hard and sweating nervously.  
  
"Chris..."  
  
"I've been doing so much great stuff with them lately, the whole MTV group. Did you see me on 'Super Secret Movie Rules' and 'Headbangers Ball'?"  
  
"I understand." Dr. Tom looks at his watch this time. "Now, why don't we just see how that exam works out, and then we can discus further options."  
  
"Good, options sound good. You know, I went to this joint for lunch that had a dozen kinds of burgers. I got this one with I dunno how many kinds of cheeses, bacon and a double patty. Oh man, it was so good, smothered in that mayo ketchup sauce."  
  
"I might cut down on the red meat."  
  
"Hey, it's your funeral doc."  
  
"Chris, we're testing promising new treatments all the time, this research center happens to be one of the finest in the world. I assure you, if options are to be found, you will find them here." Chris takes out another stressful cigarette but Dr. Tom waves a finger and speaks with true conviction, "In any event, until I see the lab reports, all I can offer you is an educated opinion based on your medical history, the culture and my own examinations." He rises.  
  
"Yea, well." Chris follows his lead and rises as well. "I'm the kind of guy who ignores anything serious and leads a happy life until what's wrong with me kills me. Don't give away the ending."  
  
"That's certainly your own decision. Any other questions I can answer for you right now?"  
  
"Yea, where's the nearest bar?"  
  
"There's a bar right across the street from here."  
  
"Great, thanks." Chris gets up to leave. "You know, someday doc, we're gonna have a health care system in this country, with a bar right in the hospital." And with that, Chris makes his exit. 


	5. At The Bar

Brian Kendrick is in the SmackDown locker room when his tag team partner Paul London enters. Brian is putting on his elbow pads when Paul comes over and sits down on the bench by him. Paul had just come back from a house show while Brian was at the doctors.  
  
"Good trip?"  
  
"Yea. How was the doctor?"  
  
"Peachy." Brian mutters the remark and continues to strap on his gear.  
  
"You know, I don't like you going out in the ring like that with a shattered bone."  
  
"Hairline fracture, Paul." Brian corrects. "Chris told me about a time he broke his arm and wrestled with it just wearing a soft cast." Brian taps his elbow pad hard to signify a soft cast rested underneath. "He was fine, took calcium pills before the operation, and look at him now."  
  
Brian tossed Paul a bottle of pills, he looks carefully at them. "Calcium pills hu."  
  
"Yea." Brian is confident. "Don't worry pal, things are gonna go fine out there. Let's just go out there and get the Velocity taping over, then we can just go hang out or something. Sound good?"  
  
Paul smirks and puts the bottle back in Brian's bag, "Yea."  
  
"Great." Brian pats Paul on the back and they get up. "Let's go."  
  
They have their match, Brian is ok even though they lost, and before going back to the hotel, they decide to go to a bar...  
  
The bar across the street from Dr. Tom's office was filled with people that night. A woman is reading the newspaper and drinking. A waiter enters the bar from the back door and begins to wipe down the counter. Chris, drunk of course, is making a fool of himself on the dance floor while the jukebox plays.  
  
"Hey, can I get another beer over here?"  
  
"Bud, right man?" The bartender asks.  
  
"Uh no, might as well gimme a Coors. Well, make it a Bud." He stars to worry in his drunken state. "Hey wait.... Bud."  
  
"You got it." The bartender goes over to get the beer.  
  
Chris sits down by the woman to drink it, "So, you all ready for hump day?"  
  
"How dare you!" The woman turns to him, on fire. "Of all the... no, I am not ready for 'hump day' you perv! Hump day hu, some porno fantasy of yours where every woman in the world gets to be an extra? I am not ready for this 'hump day' of yours, and I never will be!" She goes back to reading.  
  
"Oh-kay...., just asking if you were ready for Wednesday, the middle of the week?" Chris shakes his head and lights a cigarette. Another woman enters the bar and sits down on the other side of him. Did he dare risk to make conversation with the same question? "So, are you ready for hump day?" Of course he is, this is Chris we're talking about, and plus, he's drunk!  
  
"Yea, got plans."  
  
"Me too, first I'm gonna get drunk!" He laughs like the drunken fool that he is.  
  
"Rolling Rock." She says to the bartender.  
  
"Oh, nice choice." Chris takes a drink of his beer. "I'm gonna do something I've wanted to do for a long time."  
  
"Hey, go for it." The woman gets up and leaves.  
  
Chris leers at her, "You know, you could've just made up some excuse instead of being rude."  
  
"I'm not a nice person, I'm gonna rot in hell." The woman smirks and starts to dance.  
  
Chris sighs and looks at his empty beer, "I better have another."  
  
"Then I'd better go get some more."  
  
A man enters, "Hey barski, I'm trying to take my family to some museum, know where it is?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
"Bah screw it, gimme a cold one." He sits down and another woman enters, the nurse.  
  
"You got it." The bartender turns to her. "Hi Danielle."  
  
"What's happening Mack?" She sits down by Chris.  
  
"Hi nurse!"  
  
"Oh, hi. How you doing?" She grimaces, telling right away that he's drunk.  
  
Chris smiles, "You really wanna know?"  
  
"Well, uh... not really."  
  
"Well, I tell ya, I got back to the hotel and got so many messages on my cell phone from my wife." The nurse, Danielle, nods for him to continue. "She's so worried about me, so I say, hey baby," And note this isn't his actual conversation with his wife, he is drunk, remember? "Don't worry about me, I'm gonna be fine. And she's all," Talking in a high pitched, cracking voice. "Oh, Chris, no, I just want you to be ok, I don't want you to die. And, oh, Chris, stop smoking, you'll get cancer!" Speaking normally again, well as normal as a drunk can talk. "And so I says, I says, baby, it's just my, my, my...uh..."  
  
"Tonsils?"  
  
"Hey, whose telling the story here!" Ok, Chris is really off it now. "So then I says to her I says, hey wife, don't worry, we can still French, is all. Just no more tickling hockey." After finishing, he turns to the bartender after realizing his overemphasizing in his story knocked over his beer, "I'll have another."  
  
"You poor guy." Danielle sighs, sorry for him partially because of his condition, partially because he's drunk off his.... "I'll buy you another. Let's go." Danielle takes Chris by the arm and leads him out. The light changes as the traffic stops, they walk across the street and end up in the park. Danielle hands Chris a cup, "Here, have a drink."  
  
Disappointed, "Coffee?"  
  
"Just drink it, I'm a nurse, it's good for you."  
  
Chris drinks it and eventually accepts it, "You like taking walks in the park?"  
  
"I like it, reminds me of nature."  
  
"What the hell, maybe I'll get in a drunk fight and miss my appointment tomorrow."  
  
"Don't worry, we can fill your appointment." She turns to the street. "See that building over there? Four out of five apartments got someone inside with cancer, or waiting to get it."  
  
"Gees, I thought you were one of those happy nurses!"  
  
"I'm saying this to cheer you up. We don't know you have cancer. You just started smoking, it's probably just a virus."  
  
Chris laughs, "Right! You know what, I hate the park, where'd the bar go?" He turns and sees Victoria sitting on a bench drinking a coffee as she reads from a book. "Hey, how you doing?"  
  
Victoria turns to see them, "Oh, hello. Lovely evening, the park, the night air." She takes a deep breath. "It gets so stuffy in those hotel rooms, good to get back to what little nature we have."  
  
Danielle comes over, seeing her, "Victoria, what are you...?"  
  
"Oh, well. Steven had stepped out to go to a store for a while, so I figured, I thought I might take a walk."  
  
"You drink coffee?" Victoria nods. Chris hands her his, "Here you go, knock yourself out."  
  
"Thanks." She accepts it. "Oh, won't you sit down?" She offers.  
  
"No, I really gotta...."  
  
"Sit." Danielle shoves Chris down, then sits beside them. "How's the stomach, Victoria?"  
  
"I dunno, no better, no worse, I guess. Nothing yet, I still haven't told Steven." Chris laughs and Danielle elbows the drunk in his beer filled gut. Victoria continues, "Maybe I should just get this over with. But I don't feel right doing this, taking a life that has not yet had a chance to live."  
  
"Well, as long as you're...."  
  
"As long as I'm there." A car drives by, Tatu blasting out the rolled down windows. "Yea, you're playing my song!" She cheers and becomes wild.  
  
Drunken Chris laughs, "Boy, you guys really are a hoot aren't you! You're the kinda people I'd like to party with, especially after a nice visit to the doctor. Thanks so much for dragging me out of that awful bar." Sarcasm. He stands up. "This has really been fun." He starts to walk off.  
  
Danielle speaks up, "We'll see you Wednesday then?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Your exam."  
  
Nobody notices Brian Kendrick stagger onto the scene. Paul had hooked up with some hookers and Brian got lost in the city streets.  
  
Chris takes out a cigarette and is speaking to Danielle still, "Look what do you know anyway? You're not a doctor, you're just a nurse!" Danielle just smiles and Chris feels around himself, "Got a light?" Victoria holds out her hand with a lighter and hands it to Chris. He lights it, then returns it, "Thanks."  
  
"Well what do you have to say?" Danielle finally speaks up. "After what you do to your body."  
  
As the trio talk, they finally notice cheerful Brian, "Hello."  
  
"How are you?" Victoria smiles, another drunk in the park that night, how typical.  
  
"Oh fine." He makes his way over. "Just taking a walk in the forest."  
  
"More like a stagger." Chris snickers.  
  
"You're one to talk." Danielle whispers.  
  
"Are you drunk?" Chris asks.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Terrible." Danielle and Victoria sigh.  
  
"Wonderful!" Chris beams.  
  
"How come you're carrying that empty bottle?" Danielle asks.  
  
Brian looks at it, "Drinking from it, I'd imagine."  
  
"Don't you usually hang out with that one guy?" Victoria asks.  
  
"Paul London. Got hooked up in a bar with a buncha hookers, I'm married though."  
  
"Lucky hu?" Chris smirked, also married.  
  
"Yea." Brian sighs, looking up at the dark night sky. "Sometimes luck is hiding for a long time." 


	6. Back In The Waiting Room

The waiting room, Chris Jericho is alone reading a magazine. Victoria enters, slightly agitated.  
  
"Hey there...."  
  
"Hey hold on, I'm reading an article about smoking."  
  
Victoria tries to compose herself. She sits, gets up, paces, finally she can't stand it anymore, "I'm really sorry to bother you, I wanted to know if I could read that if you were done."  
  
"Ok."  
  
"I'm afraid that, Steven and I aren't going to be able to work things out."  
  
"Well don't worry about it, just get the abortion."  
  
"But it just doesn't feel right!"  
  
"Then you'll have to tell him."  
  
"But I can't!"  
  
Chris sighs and looks around, then hands over the magazine, "Here I'm done, not nothing Dr. Tom won't tell me about throat cancer. I'll be right back, gotta go to the bathroom for a sec."  
  
"Ok, thanks." She takes it and sits down.  
  
Chris is about to leave when Brian enters with his duffel bag, "Hello."  
  
"Hey."  
  
"Nice pants."  
  
"Oh, thanks. Great..." Searching. "Duffel bag." He leaves and Brian takes his seat.  
  
"How are you?" Victoria asks.  
  
"Oh, fine." Brian messes with his hair. "Nice.... shirt."  
  
"Yea, well, I think it would be a good idea to wear something like this as to hide my stomach from Steven and the others." Victoria bites her lip. "Thank you, by the way, for keeping it just between us in the waiting room."  
  
"Oh." Brian smiles. "No problem."  
  
"How's Paul?"  
  
"Still with the hookers."  
  
"Nice for him. Wife?"  
  
"Exhausting."  
  
"Your arm?"  
  
"Just a little problem with the calcium pills."  
  
"Well, I'm sure the doctor will know what to do."  
  
"Yea, still hurts though."  
  
"Oh, sorry."  
  
"Well, Vince said he'll give me the time off to heal, he's a good guy."  
  
"Yea." Victoria stops when a door opens and in walks Dr. Tom.  
  
"Oh." He halts immediately.  
  
"Hello." Victoria smiles.  
  
"I'm sorry. I must have, used the wrong door. I..."  
  
"Won't you sit down?"  
  
"Sit down? No thank you." He leaves and rushes into his office.  
  
Chris comes back in and sits back down, "Ok, I'm back."  
  
"Nature calls?" Brian asks.  
  
"Nope." Chris smirks. "Hangover." 


	7. Dr Tom's Office

Dr. Tom rushed into his office followed by the nurse, Danielle. He changes out of his street jacket and into his doctor's coat.  
  
"Send in the next patient."  
  
"Alright." She nods and leaves.  
  
Dr. Tom sits down and sees Danielle enter with Chris, "Good afternoon Chris."  
  
Chris laughs and sits down, "Oh no you don't, you tell me."  
  
Dr. Tom pauses and looks at him, composing himself, "I'm afraid that the exam results didn't test to our liking. I'd like to schedule you for surgery as soon as possible."  
  
It takes a moment for Chris to take it, "Surgery? You mean..." He tries to pronounce the word but the lump forming in this throat causes him to choke, "Tah, ton...."  
  
"I'm afraid that, due to both your illness and the presence of a slight small cancer, it's the only option. Perhaps if it had been found earlier..."  
  
Chris is stammering, "Look, the culture said..."  
  
"As you can see, however, we are forming better medical technology al the time."  
  
"Oh, well, that's good."  
  
"In the meantime, I'm afraid that your tonsils will have to be removed."  
  
Stunned, "You mean, the... my tonsils?"  
  
"Uhm, yes, unfortunately."  
  
"What...?" Chris's voice squeaks in fear, trying not to cry.  
  
"I can assure you, it's perfectly safe in cases such as your own."  
  
Incredulous, "Oh, I don't think so, not this time!"  
  
"Of course it's your decision, no one is forcing you to...."  
  
"And no one can force me to have the ton... the ton..."  
  
"Tonsillectomy."  
  
"Yea, yea, whatever. Nobody can force me to have that either!"  
  
Stunned, "We're not talking about an elective procedure, this procedure can save your life!"  
  
"You mean as soon as.... see, I've got.... but I...."  
  
"Chris! You have what appears to be a very aggressive ailment."  
  
"Do I?" Hard. "Sorry..."  
  
"Any other questions I can answer for you right now?" He pauses.  
  
Chris takes out another cigarette, and replies in a challenging wry, "Yea, why me?"  
  
Refers to Chris's chart, "Well, you have a number of known risk factors. Heredity, alcohol consumption...."  
  
"What's riskier, being born or living your life?"  
  
"Please, I was referring to your choice live style. Shall I go on?"  
  
"Yea..."  
  
"Diet, smoking," Chris puts the cigarette down on his desk. "numerous cases of untreated tonsillitis...."  
  
Sarcastic, careless, "Whoops."  
  
"On the other hand, in most of these throat cancer cases, when caught early, not all people have any known risk factors at all. So..."  
  
A sigh of defeat, "All you know is, its gotta go."  
  
Upon rising, "Of course, you are free to get another opinion. I encourage you to do that, as soon as possible. Then discuss it with your family, a significant other, and please let me know what you decide."  
  
There is a pause as Chris is very frightened, "No, no... we got a date, doc." He leaves.  
  
Dr. Tom sighs quietly with regret, "If only it didn't have to be this way..."  
  
"Excuse me, Dr. Prichard?" He looks up to see the nurse, Danielle, who had just passed Chris as he made his exit down the hall.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"A Brian Kendrick is waiting out there, it's about his arm." Dr. Tom recalls and nods. "Shall I prepare him for surgery?" Dr. Tom thinks for a moment, then nods, Danielle nods back and returns to the waiting room. 


	8. The Recovery Room

The recovery room, Victoria is in bed reading and drinking some coffee, her bed filled with clutter. After a while, Chris is wheeled in by another nurse, a man. Chris is still woozy from the anesthetic and is very tired.  
  
"You ring the bell if you need something, alright?" The nurse says. Chris nods, still in a daze, the nurse leaves.  
  
"Hello." Victoria is bright.  
  
But Chris is weary, his voice is very hoarse, weak and tired, "Oh... hey, how you doing."  
  
"Oh fine, fine. I've been here a week and I'm feeling almost... chipper. Well, considering my, shame." She lowers her head.  
  
Chris finally is coming to, "Oh, no."  
  
"Yea." Victoria nods. "I got the abortion. Steven never knew."  
  
"Sorry I can't be of help. See, my wife and I don't even have kids yet." (A/N: Yes I know he has a son, in this story he doesn't have a kid yet.)  
  
"Ah, well then..." She efforts to cheer him up. "I'd like to be friends after this." Chris nods, still in his depressed state of delusion. Victoria grows concerned, "How are you?"  
  
"I don't know." Chris cleared his throat but winced at the terrible sting. "I guess that's for the doctor to say, they had, they took a... they did a.... They took my tonsils."  
  
"That's all?"  
  
"That's all!?" Chris calms down. "And they took some lymph nodes to see if they're clean."  
  
"Well I'm quite sure that they are."  
  
"So, are you going to tell Steven?"  
  
"About what?"  
  
"About you, and, your abortion."  
  
"Oh, I dunno. Maybe... eventually."  
  
"It's ok, I guess I understand." Chris looks up as the male nurse returns. "Give us the good news, scrubs."  
  
The nurse is delighted as he turns to Victoria, "You were originally to be here another week, you aren't as frail as normal women."  
  
"Cause I'm not, I'm a diva." She smirks and winks in a typical diva style pose.  
  
"Well, you should call somebody to pick you up." The nurse turns to Chris, who looks eager. The nurse just smiles back and leaves, Chris frowns.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry." Victoria notices his expression. "Does it hurt?"  
  
"It feels like they've wrung a pipe cleaner up and down my throat!" He coughs slightly.  
  
"Well, I guess I should call Steven, I bet he's missing me. I hope he's not worried, I haven't told him I'd be in the hospital for an abortion." Chris beings to cry, Victoria is shocked beyond disbelief. "Do you miss your family, your friends?"  
  
Chris continues to cry, "My tonsils!"  
  
Victoria wears a small, meek smile, trying not to laugh, "I see. Sorry..."  
  
The nurse returns again, this time with a groggy Brian in the wheelchair, "Ring this bell if you need anything." He leaves  
  
"Brian," Victoria nods as he sits down on his bed. "Welcome to the club." He gives a sloppy salute before laying down. Chris just sighs and wipes his teary eyes, feeling sicker than he did before coming here.


	9. Checking Up

Just a quick note: the main reason Victoria is staying is because of the emotional stress, plus she wanted to be there for her friends, besides Steven thinks she's in for something more serious, but anyways, yea.... story-

Later that afternoon, in the recovery room, Victoria has a book about cancer on her bed and is reading another one about the throat. Chris is curled up in a ball no top of his sheets, staring at the corner. Brian is watching TV, a late afternoon talk show is on as Dr. Tom comes in with his nurse, Danielle. He comes to Brian first.  
  
"Hey doc, how's the arm?" He asks as Dr. Tom examines it.  
  
To Danielle, "Had to insert a steel plate, he's got four screw bolts in there. Was originally to be seven."  
  
"Unbelievable."  
  
"The bone snapped in two. He was only able to prolong the operation up until now because he was taking calcium pills, wore a soft cast temporarily, and has a high tolerance for pain."  
  
"Yea, that's just the business, doc." Brian smirks, Danielle smiles back.  
  
"Moving on." Dr. Tom leads Danielle to Victoria's bed. "Simple abortion."  
  
"I see."  
  
"You're looking well, Victoria."  
  
"Yes." She has a second thought. "Well, not too well..."  
  
"Oh?"  
  
"I still don't know if or how I'll tell my boyfriend about this."  
  
"Eventually." Dr. Tom puts a hand on her shoulder. He and Danielle move on again. "Next." They start to move to Chris, "Why don't you go for a while, I'll meet you downstairs."  
  
"Alright." Danielle nods and leaves the room, joining the male nurse down the hall.  
  
Dr. Tom goes over to Chris, still looking decimated and traumatized. He's wearing the hospital gown over his cloths, his hair is shaggy and his face is sleep deprived, he's just a mess, "How are you Chris?"  
  
A simple, absent minded reply, "How am I, doctor?" He looks over his shoulder, "Sit down, make yourself comfortable."  
  
Dr. Tom sits down, "Thanks." He thinks for a moment. "Chris..."  
  
"Uh oh."  
  
"The lymph nodes weren't exactly as we hoped for."  
  
"I'm sorry they disappointed you. So what do you want to do now, clean them up for me?" He waits for a reply, then turns around to be sitting down next to the doctor. "Is the art of conversation dead, look, just say it alright? Say it!"  
  
"They're clean of cancer," Dr. Tom begins and Chris's angered expression changes, his eyebrows lift as his fist loosens. Dr. Tom continues, "but they do suffer the effects of the tonsillitis virus."  
  
"Well, what does that mean? Am I gonna be ok?"  
  
"Yes, eventually. You still have a long recovery and are now more so prolonged to suffer from throat infections more often...."  
  
"But, no cancer?"  
  
"No cancer." Dr. Tom looks Chris in the eyes, the sparkle of life seemed to have slowly returned to them. "No tonsils either."  
  
Chris smirks as he clears his throat and rubs his sore neck, "So what now?"  
  
"Now, you recover."  
  
Chris coughs hard, "Ouch."  
  
"Hurts?"  
  
"As Stone Cold would say, oh hell yea." He starts to laugh but a cry utters out.  
  
Dr. Tom smiles and rubs Chris's neck where his swollen tonsils used to be, "Here, let me have a look." Chris opens his mouth to allow Dr. Tom to do a check up exam. "Well things seem to be progressing slowly, but they're progressing. The white dots are minimizing." He lets Chris close his mouth. "Just give it some time. I'll come back to check up on you guys later." He stands up. "Want some ice cream?"  
  
Chris smirks, "As much as that sounds tempting, I'll have to pass."  
  
"Alright." Dr. Tom smiles and leaves. Chris sighs and lays down on his bed, a new outlook on things.  
  
That night, Victoria can't concentrate on her reading, she didn't have it. Chris still looks a mess though, eating junk food and crumpling the wrappers and throwing them on the floor. Brian is watching a late night talk show. Finally Victoria can't stand it anymore, she goes over to Chris.  
  
"My god, Chris. You can't just lie there, eating junk after junk like that."  
  
Brian yells at the TV, "Stupid pet tricks, I don't wanna see that, I wanna watch something good!"  
  
"Brian, please." Victoria tries to maintain the sanity of the room.  
  
"TV knows I don't like stupid shows, I wanna see some action, like Cops, or the news!"  
  
"Nurse!" The male nurse enters at Victoria's call.  
  
"What's up?"  
  
She points to Brian, "If you please."  
  
He gives Brian a dose of morphine and pats his shoulder, "Alright kid, chill."  
  
"Yo nurse." Chris's voice is still raspy and tired. "Something for the pain?"  
  
"Hold on."  
  
"And no needles!"  
  
"I know." The nurse rolls his eyes and grabs two pills with a glass of water.  
  
Chris takes them and chokes, "Nurse, goddamit!" He yells but yelps at the sore sting. "I'm supposed to be comfortable in this expensive hotel, I'm not..."  
  
"You see this?" The impatient nurse taps his tag. "It says RN, I'm not your maid! Got it." He leaves. Chris sighs and grips his neck tightly.  
  
"Shut up Chris, please!" Victoria calms down. She goes over to Chris and hands him her coffee. He looks at her and eventually takes it, the hot liquid soothing his scarred throat. "There now."  
  
Chris gives a wry shrug, "Thanks."  
  
Victoria goes back to her own bed and Danielle enters, "Hey, how are you?"  
  
"I'm fine, how about you?"  
  
"Can't complain." She motions to the moping Chris.  
  
"Hey, come in." Chris smirks. "Have a candy bar, the only thing of mine they haven't taken."  
  
"Don't eat so much sugar."  
  
"You know, maybe I'll do some new material at my next concert." Chris thinks aloud.

Victoria looks up, "You shouldn't practice yet, your throat's still in the recovery stage."

Chris begins to sing, "King of the night time world." He breaks into a hard coughing fit which, as if the sining didn't hurt enough, was only making the pain worse.  
  
Brian, finally attention on them instead of the TV, "See, we told you, the doctor said..."  
  
Chris caught his breath, "I know what the doctor said, and I don't care!"  
  
"You don't need to talk to loud."  
  
"Sorry." Chris grimaces, and really is because of his voice. "But it's my life, and not anyone else's. Nobody can tell me what to do."  
  
"What?"  
  
Victoria sighs, "Frankly you baffle me."  
  
"Frankly, going on without this wouldn't have been so bad. I'm gonna die someday anyway, we all are, some just sooner than others. But isn't it worse, not living while you're alive?"  
  
"You go." Brian cheers, still a little doped up.  
  
"You're doing alright Chris, whatever you decide." Danielle hugs him, he accepts it.


	10. The Waiting Room

As the night drones on, Victoria stares out the window, thinking. She's still doing that when Steven enters to pick her up, "Victoria!"  
  
She's startled but slowly turns around, "How are you, Stevie?"  
  
Brian is still out of it, "Hey!"  
  
"That's Brian."  
  
"I see." Steven smiles over at him. "How are you?"  
  
"Oh fine." He smiles stupidly.  
  
"And Chris is over there." Victoria points over to the pouting, stubborn Jericho.  
  
"Have we met?" Steven smirks.  
  
"Get bent."  
  
"How charming." Steven tries not to laugh.  
  
Brian turns on the TV, "I'm fine, everybody's fine!" A family sitcom plays in the background.  
  
Victoria hesitates and turns from Brian watching TV, "I'm... not alright, Steven."  
  
"The doctor said you're fine, Vic. I'll take care of you." He hugs her. "Poor girl."  
  
"There's something I've been meaning to tell you." As soon as Victoria speaks up, Brian and Chris whirl around. Brian turns off the tv.  
  
"What is it?" Steven asks, concerned.  
  
"My sister's not pregnant."  
  
"Oh." Steven doesn't know what to say. "That's a shame."  
  
"And my stomach problems...." Victoria hesitates and Steven feels his rising. "Weren't from food poisoning."  
  
"So you weren't here getting your stomach pumped..."  
  
"Right." Victoria looks up at him, he knows. "I had an abortion." Chris and Brian are frozen watching this soap opera dramatic scene. Brian eats some popcorn as Chris is zoned out into it. Victoria looks up. "I'm sorry Steven."  
  
Steven is silent for a moment, "Oh, Victoria." He hugs her tightly and she tries not to cry. "It's ok, it's really alright."  
  
"I'm just sorry I didn't tell you."  
  
"No, I understand." Steven looks at her in her eyes. "Victoria, I love you. I want you to be able to trust me with these things. Do you understand?" Victoria sniffs and nods. "There you go. Now come on, let's get you outta here."  
  
"Ok." Victoria gets out of the bed, wearing her street cloths. Steven gets her bag and leaves. Victoria follows but turns back to see Chris and Brian still staring. "Thanks you guys."  
  
The boys snap out of the daze and Chris looks up at her, "Are you sure you're ready to leave?"  
  
"Yea. I think I'm ready to return to house shows with Steven."  
  
"You don't have to."  
  
"I have to."  
  
"Can't you stay?" Brian asks.  
  
"I can't. Steven needs me." Victoria looks over at Chris. "I'll see you Monday then, hu."  
  
They exchange an understanding look, "Wait, I'd like to give you something."  
  
"No, please." Victoria smiles as he stands up. "It's not that jar that they put your...."  
  
"No, no!" Chris laughs. "I pray to god they throw it out down a garbage disposal." Chris smiles and speaks softly. "Here." He kisses her gently on the cheek. "To remember me by." She blushes.  
  
"But we'll see each other in the waiting room, won't we? It's always such a long wait."  
  
"Isn't it?" Brian smirks, he is standing, he hugs her, she returns it.  
  
Chris sighs, "It's a long wait, yea." He looks up at her.  
  
"Victoria!" Steven's voice is heard from down the hall.  
  
"Coming!" She turns back to the boys and smiles. "Wait for me." They nod.  
  
Victoria turns and leaves. Brian and Chris stand there and then turn to each other. Brian smiles and extends his hand. Chris pauses for a moment but then grins, they shake hands and hold tight. An orderly comes into clean Victoria's bed to ready it for the next time. Danielle enters the room and smiles. Chris and Brian nod as she goes to continue their rounds. They return to their beds and lie back down as midnight ensues. Chris coughed quietly into his sheets as Brian resumed watching TV. 


	11. WWE: A Fairytale Feud, preview

A/N: This is just a one shot attempt at a possible sequel to 'The Waiting Room'. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this idea or where I'll take it, but let me know what you think so your pointers can help me make it better.  
  
Brian Kendrick was running down the hall of the arena, he was trying to get to the locker room as quickly as possible. In his hand he gripped a necklace, a necklace that had a special meaning, a purpose. He ran passed the open door of the women's locker room...  
  
"Spanky!"  
  
He screeched to a halt at the feminine call of his voice. He turned to see his one true love, "Victoria..." But he was shocked and confused at the tone of her voice and expression on her face.  
  
"You, stop right there!" Victoria hurled something at him. It was small, but it felt like an arrow piercing his heart as it bumped off his chest. Spanky fell to his knees as Victoria walked off, he felt paralyzed.  
  
"Vic, but I... I don't understand." He looked down at the object he now held in his hand, it was the ring he'd given to her... an engagement ring. Then, the world went black....  
  
Victoria stomped down the hall with a scowl on her face. She loved Spanky with all her heart, but now it bled for what he'd done to her made her feel a pain worse than death. She was hurt, confused, she couldn't really explain it. She had broken up with Steven Richards shortly after her abortion scare, things just weren't working out between them. She and Spanky remained close after their meeting in the waiting room, and soon their friendship bloomed into something more. But somebody still coveted the love of Victoria, her ex-boyfriend Steven Richards. Unbeknownst to the two, now ex-lovers, Steven was behind the whole 'betrayal'. After having her heart torn, again, Victoria took some time off but nobody saw or heard from her since then.  
  
To replace her, a new diva was brought in, without even going to the OVW for training. She was so much like her it was uncanny, and her name was Kari Ketchum.  
  
A/N: Ok, well that's basically the intro of the story, the storyline is that Spanky is set to work with Kari as Victoria's replacement, but the resemblance strikes something into his heart, love. They fall for each other, but then... Victoria returns. Chris Jericho is also in this story, he has a crush on Kari as well, which enrages Spanky and causes their friendship to alter into a heated rivalry. Paul London and Ivory (along with her cat of course) are the best friends of Spanky and Kari and are featured with them quite often. RVD, the former tag team champion alongside Spanky, were once like brothers but now, no longer champions or a tag team, RVD is jealous of Spanky's success and also looks to seek revenge upon his former friend. And, that's basically a beginning summary of what I kinda had in mind. So, what do you think? 


End file.
